Mayor Bloomberg today announced that the City is launching four new central digital media channels for City information as part of Social Media Week. The NYCGov social media channels will allow the City to effectively engage with residents by providing instant access to relevant and useful information about life in the City.

The Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment will maintain each of the pages, as outlined in the Road Map for the Digital City by the Mayor and Chief Digital Officer Rachel Sterne in May 2011. Mayor Bloomberg made the announcement at the headquarters of Tumblr, one of the City’s fastest-growing technology companies, and was joined by Tumblr CEO David Karp, Cornell NYC Tech Campus Dean Daniel P. Huttenlocher, Chief Digital Officer Sterne, New York City Economic President Seth Pinsky, Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment Commissioner Katherine Oliver and representatives from Bitly, Buddy Media, Facebook and Foursquare.

“In this era of the information age, these social media platforms are where so many New Yorkers are increasingly getting their news, conducting their business, sharing their opinions, and living their lives” said Mayor Bloomberg. “With these new channels, the City will be able to get New Yorkers the information they need in the way they want to get it.”

Mayor Bloomberg launched four central digital media channels – Facebook, Foursquare, Tumblr and Twitter – where the City will have a presence under the NYCGov handle. On these channels, the City will centralize, expand and streamline its messaging for critical information, offering top-level news about the City. Each of these custom pages has been created in partnership with the platform on which it is presented.

In addition to these channels, the City also partnered with Bitly to provide a custom link-shortener that shortens any NYC.gov webpage link to on.nyc.gov. With the NYC Gov Bitly shortlink, users know that anytime they see a custom on.nyc.gov link, it will direct them to an official New York City government webpage. The City also partnered with Buddy Media platform, who provided their tools and advisedon the development and launch of the City’s Facebook page.

To complement the City’s social medial channels, the multi-media video series InformNYC will provide New Yorkers with useful information about City services by answering the most frequently asked questions received by 311. The videos provide helpful tips on what to do and which agencies to contact for a variety of situations that New Yorkers face on a regular basis, including how to report street noise, request a birth certificate, locate an item left in a taxi, among others. InformNYC will appear online on the City’s social media channels, on the City’s television stations, and in taxi cabs. The videos can currently be viewed on NYC.gov by clicking on the InformNYC button.

“When the Mayor and I outlined the Digital Road Map last May, we recognized that for the City of New York to realize its digital potential, we need to embrace new technologies. We also know that it is crucial that we use digital media in a way that is efficient, making life easier for New Yorkers and always meeting their needs,” said Chief Digital Officer Rachel Sterne. “The NYCgov channels we are introducing today achieve the best of both worlds, and thanks to support from our partners, we know that we are able to go above and beyond in taking advantage of all that Bitly, Buddy Media, Facebook, Foursquare, Tumblr and Twitter have to offer New Yorkers.”

“New York City is home to a thriving and expanding digital media sector, with homegrown success stories like Foursquare and Tumblr being joined by new arrivals like Facebook and Twitter to create thousands of jobs,” Deputy Mayor for Economic Development Robert K. Steel said. “By leveraging these technology platforms to communicate with New Yorkers, we will help make sure that New York City is the new capital of the digital economy.”

“New Yorkers have always been in-the-know, and now, thanks to these Citywide social media channels, they’ll have an even greater opportunity to engage with their government,” said Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment Commissioner Katherine Oliver. “By using the resources of the Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment and working with various City agencies, we’re also able to populate these social media pages with a new instructive video series – InformNYC – allowing residents to get instant access to important information that directly impacts their lives.”

“With employment booming in our technology sector and homegrown companies such as Tumblr rapidly expanding, each day we are reminded that New York is growing as a global hub of creative energy,” said New York City Economic Development President Corporation Seth W. Pinsky. "Going forward, the Bloomberg Administration will continue to capitalize on our momentum, with the goal of ensuring our city's place as the world leader in technology for the 21st century."

“New York is the world's most diverse and creative city, and its startups are some of the most innovative,” said David Karp, CEO & founder of Tumblr. “That's no coincidence! Tumblr was born here five years ago this month, and we couldn’t be prouder to see the city doing so much to support innovation.”

New York City is the social media capital of the United States. Millions of people use social media across the five boroughs, and its use has grown exponentially over the last three years. It has increasingly become a resource during emergencies, with over 400,000 impressions taking place during Hurricane Irene. The Citywide accounts will allow New Yorkers the opportunity to follow the City and get the most important news without needing to follow each of the over 200 other social media channels that City agencies currently offer. Residents can also continue to follow these additional social media channels to receive relevant updates about each agency’s initiatives.

@nycgov captures the pulse of New York City government, with tweets about news and services that impact their lives. Residents can find out if alternate side parking rules are in effect and schools are in session, read about free events in their neighborhood, get emergency notifications that could affect them and their commute, see what Mayor Bloomberg is doing and learn about new City programs as soon as they launch. Visit twitter.com/nycgov.

“New York has the largest Twitter developer population outside of California in the U.S and provides us yet another reason to look forward to our growing presence here,” said Jack Dorsey, Co-Founder of Twitter.

NYC Gov’s Facebook page enables New Yorkers to get all the information they need in one place and share it with friends. NYC Gov’s Facebook includes videos, new City initiatives, interactive features such as polls and a Citywide events calendar, allowing residents to engage with the City of New York and other New Yorkers on NYC Gov’s Facebook wall. Visit facebook.com/nycgov.

“We're pleased that Mayor Bloomberg and the City of New York are using Facebook to reach people in a direct, personal, and simple way that was unimaginable a decade ago. Today's announcement builds on the Mayor's visionary Road Map for a Digital City and will help connect citizens with important information and services,” said Joel Kaplan, Vice President-U.S. Public Policy.

NYC Gov’s Tumblr is a blog that publishes frequent updates on the topics that matter most to New Yorkers, like schools, jobs, getting around the City and much more. The NYC Gov Tumblr features up-to-the-minute announcements, exclusive photos from City events and Mayoral visits, as well as quick videos that answer frequently asked questions on City services. Users can browse posts by major themes, share them by reblogging, and even submit a question to Mayor Bloomberg with the #AskMike feature. Catch up on what’s going on in NYC by visiting nycgov.tumblr.com

NYC Gov’s foursquare presence includes a brand-new Big Apple badge, lists and tips for a range of City spaces across the five boroughs. If residents want to find something to do, they can follow NYC Gov on foursquare for places to go from parks and pools to museums and landmarks. Whether biking near Prospect Park or walking in Central Park and interested in finding out about more to do in the area, NYC Gov’s foursquare account brings New Yorkers fun, helpful facts each time they check in to City spaces – all while they earn a foursquare badge. Check out foursquare.com/nycgov.